Hampshire plans a 12-place autism base at Church Crookham Junior School from 2027/28. Anyone can comment until 23 October; the cost is set in January.
Church Crookham Junior School is set to get a specialist base for up to 12 children with autism. Hampshire County Council published the formal notice on Friday 25 September, and anyone can comment on it until Friday 23 October.
The base would open in phases from the 2027/28 school year. It would sit inside the mainstream school on Tweseldown Road, using classrooms the school does not currently need.
What is being proposed
The county’s statutory public notice calls it an Inclusion Base (Specialist). The council used to call these Resourced Provisions. The notice sets out:
- up to 12 places for junior-age pupils with autism
- opening in phases from the 2027/28 academic year
- existing surplus rooms converted, with IT, furniture and safeguarding work
- a new secure outdoor play space
- no change to the number of mainstream places at the school
The school has room. The notice says it has capacity for 600 pupils and 473 on roll, which leaves 127 places empty.
The reason given is demand. “There are an increasing number of children in the Fleet area who are being diagnosed or on a pathway for a diagnosis of autism,” the notice says.
How the base would work
The council’s consultation page from the summer explains the model. Pupils would be on the roll of Church Crookham Junior School itself. They would join mainstream classes where that suits them, and spend the rest of their time in the base for small-group or one-to-one support.
Places would be for children with Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans. The county’s Special Educational Needs team, not the school, would allocate them. The page says the school would get extra funding for staff and resources.
What it will cost
We do not know yet, and neither does the council. The notice says the capital cost “will be known after a detailed feasibility”. It will then go into the Children’s Services capital programme for approval by the Executive Member in January 2027.
The county’s 9 September announcement says the money for this round comes from the government’s High Needs fund.
One of six across Hampshire
Church Crookham is the only Hart school in this round. On 9 September the county’s Cabinet Member for Education, Councillor Juliet Henderson, agreed to consult on six new bases with 72 places between them.
The six schools and their proposed places are:
| School | Area | Places |
|---|---|---|
| Castle Hill Infant School | Basingstoke | 9 |
| Castle Hill Primary School | Basingstoke | 12 |
| Church Crookham Junior School | Hart | 12 |
| Denmead Junior School | Waterlooville | 12 |
| Knightwood Primary School | Eastleigh | 12 |
| The Henry Cort Community College | North Whiteley | 15 |
Councillor Henderson said bases like these give children “the very best chance to thrive in their own communities”. She added that they “minimise travel distances and transport costs and reduce our reliance on very expensive independent and non-maintained settings”.
How we got here
- 8 June to 6 July 2026: first consultation, with a drop-in at the school on 16 June
- 9 September: the Cabinet Member agreed to move to formal notices
- 25 September: statutory notice published
- 23 October: comments close
- January 2027: capital cost goes for approval
- 2027/28: the base opens in phases
The summer consultation page said a final decision was expected in “late autumn 2026 / early spring 2027”.
What it means for you
If your child has autism and an EHC plan, this could mean a specialist place in Church Crookham rather than a long journey out of the area. Places are allocated by the county’s SEN team, so ask your child’s SEN caseworker about it rather than the school.
If you want to comment, for or against, you have until Friday 23 October. The notice gives three routes:
- phone 03707 795312
- write to the SEN Partnership Development Manager, Children’s Services Department, EII Court North, Winchester SO23 8UG
- email the address on the public notice
The same address will send you the complete proposal. The notice is only an extract of it.
If your child is already at the school, the notice says mainstream capacity does not change. The base uses rooms that are currently surplus.
For term dates across the district, see our Fleet school term dates page.
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